New Video Board To Enhance SHSU's Don Sanders Stadium

Bud Haney and Don Sanders, both Bearkat alums, have made possible the addition of a new video/scoreboard at Sam Houston State’s modern baseball facility.

Installation of the top-of-the-line board by Daktronics is set to begin this summer to be ready for the 2014 Bearkat baseball season at Don Sanders Stadium.

Haney and Sanders have teamed to donate $240,000 towards the $300,000 cost of the video board.

“We greatly appreciate this generous gift from Bud Haney and Don Sanders in support of the Bearkat baseball program,” Sam Houston State president Dana Gibson said. “The video board will add a new dimension of entertainment, excitement and energy for our fans on game day.”

Dimensions for the new board will be 31 feet, 10.4 inches tall by 36 feet wide. The board will feature a 20mm video display with 198 lines of resolution by 360 columns of resolution.

The board also will feature four sponsor advertising opportunities to provide additional revenue for the Bearkat athletic program.

“The new video board will help the vision for Sam Houston baseball of becoming the elite college baseball program in Texas,” Haney said. “This will be a first class video board for a first class baseball facility.”

Joseph L. “Bud” Haney is the only athlete in Sam Houston sports history to earn All-America honors four consecutive years. Haney earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting in 1963 after four years as a baseball letterman that included a victory at the NAIA World Series national championship his senior season.

Haney is the founder, president and chief financial officer of Profiles International, a Waco-based occupational assessment company. He is the co-author of “40 Strategies for Winning In Business.”

“It is an honor and a privilege to participate in such a major positive upgrade to our stadium,” Sanders said. “I am pleased to work with Bud Haney to make this possible.”

Sanders is a former owner of the Houston Sports Association and the Houston Astros Baseball Club. Currently, along with Nolan Ryan, he is co-owner of Ryan-Sanders Baseball.

Founder and chairman of the investment firm Sanders Morris Harris, Sanders is a leading figure in in a variety of Greater Houston area civic, corporate and financial enterprises.

Don Sanders Stadium, named in his honor, opened Feb. 11, 2006.

“Sam Houston is fortunate to have wonderful alumni who give at such a high level to help this university succeed,” Bobby Williams, Bearkat director of athletics said. “The addition of the video board not only elevates the fan experience at the complex but also will provide outstanding opportunities for additional advertising revenue for the program. The athletic department is grateful to our university president, Dr. Dana Gibson, whose leadership has been instrumental in implementing this project.”

Sam Houston State baseball has seen remarkable success since the stadium opened. The Bearkats earned NCAA Division I regional playoff berths in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2012.

The 2012 baseball team earned Sam Houston its first NCAA Division I national top 20 rankings and the program’s first Southland Conference regular season championship since 1989.